Looking for Waterfalls!

“Summer in West Virginia was very wet this year. Autumn has been no different. Why not take advantage of it and go take some pictures of waterfalls?!”

This is what went through my head when the current Shoot to Serve photo assignment, Beautiful Waterfalls, came along.

Nice thought. But not everyone can just up and go whenever they want in search for the greatest waterfalls in the world.

And I’m no different.

But, should it keep me from trying? At least I can look around for them locally, right?

The first place that came to mind where I might be able to find a waterfall was along a back-road on the way to church. I figured it would at least be worth checking out….and here’s how my little photo excursion turned out!

Going deeper

In the video above, I mentioned how I didn’t mind getting wet and how I was keeping warm. Great pictures aren’t often found under great weather conditions, so it’s a good idea to know how to stay warm and dry: 3 Keys to Staying Warm When It’s Freezing Outside.

I also mentioned that I would have shot the waterfall (if there had been enough water) in such a way that the water appeared smooth and silky. It’s a professional effect and makes your waterfall pictures look much, much better! It’s not hard to do if you know how to do it: 5 Steps to Capturing the Smooth Water Effect.

And lastly, I put together a completely new video with my brother Jonathan last week! I updated the Lesson about metering and exposure in the Foundations of Photography Course (which is free if you’re in The Click) adding some new diagrams and hopefully providing a better explanation for understanding how the meter inside the camera works. Whether you’ve been through Foundations yet or not, the updates and new video are worth checking out: On Metering and Exposure.

Now it’s your turn!

Have any local waterfalls around? Maybe one along a stream that runs through a nearby park? Do you know if the little local waterfalls in your area are year-round or not? Challenge yourself!

Now that you’ve gathered some inspiration and hopefully learned a little more about how to go about shooting the assignment, Beautiful Waterfall, it’s time to move on to the next step and familiarize yourself with the details of the assignment:

And of course, if you can’t come up with anything, feel free to go through and submit some photos from your archives like I did. Here’s a shot I’ll be submitting of a waterfall that I took while traveling through Ohio earlier this year.